If you still don't think food has a direct affect on the numerically measurable aspects of health ... see the documentary "Supersize Me." Besides, it's also entertaining. He shows what happens at the extremes of poor eating, but consider where your habits fall on the continuum between "near deaths door" and "incredible energy / vitality."
As Hippocrates said "Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food."
Best to all, C.C.
Supersize Me Documentary - WELL WORTH SEEING
Started by
calmcookie
, Mar 08 2008 09:06 AM
3 replies to this topic
#2
stocks
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Posted 08 March 2008 - 11:13 AM
So if you are at risk from heart disease, eat at McDonalds! But sugar is bad for you! A rather silly study on the whole but fun nonetheless. What a study of force-feeding tells us, who could say? Note also that the preliminary report of this study reveals that the results were much more complex than described below
A month-long diet of fast food and no exercise led to dangerously high levels of enzymes linked to liver damage, in an unusual experiment inspired by the docu-movie "Supersize Me." But investigators, reporting their findings on Thursday, were also stunned to find that a relentless regimen of burgers, fries and soda also boosted so-called good cholesterol, seen as a key measure of cardiovascular health.
Researchers in Sweden asked 12 men and six women in their twenties, all slim and in good health, to eat two meals per day at McDonalds, Burger King or other fast-food restaurants over four weeks. The volunteers were also told to refrain from exercising. The goal was to increase body weight by 10 to 15 percent to measure the impact of an abrupt surge in calorie intake.
Blood samples were taken before, during and after the experiment to monitor levels of an enzyme called alanine aminotransferase, or ALT, a potential marker for liver damage often seen among heavy drinkers and patients with hepatitis C. Levels of ALT increased sharply after only one week, and quadrupled on average over the entire period, said lead researcher Frederik Nystrom, a doctor at the University Hospital of Linkoping. "The results scared me," he told AFP. "One of the subjects had to be withdrawn from the study because he had 10 times the normal ALT levels."
For 11 of the 18 subjects, ALT rose to levels that would normally reflect liver damage, even among individuals who did not drink any alcohol, although no such damage occurred, he said. Two of the individuals had liver steatosis, or fatty liver, in which fat cells build up dangerously in the liver, he said. Steatosis is associated with the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, which has taken on epidemic proportions, especially in industrialised countries.
Published in the British Medical Association's journal Gut, the study "proves that high ALT levels can be caused by food alone," said Nystrom. That signs of liver damage were linked to carbohydrates was another key finding, he said. "It was not the fat in the hamburgers, it was rather the sugar in the coke," he said.
But the most startling result implies that an intensive fast food diet might have some health benefits too, apparently from fat. "We found that healthy HDL cholesterol actually increased over the four-week period -- this was very counter-intuitive," Nystrom said. HDL, sometimes called "good cholesterol," seems to clean the walls of blood vessels, removing excess "bad cholesterol" that can cause coronary artery disease and transporting it to the liver for processing.
Nystrom has yet to publish the cholesterol findings, but said they were consistent with the so-called "French Paradox." For nearly two decades, scientists have wrestled to explain how the French can consume a diet rich in fats -- from abundant butter, cream, cheese and meat -- yet have generally low levels of heart disease and hypertension. "The study showed that the increase in saturated fat correlated with the increase in healthy cholesterol," he said.
http://www.blogdimen...che?s=32771690-
A month-long diet of fast food and no exercise led to dangerously high levels of enzymes linked to liver damage, in an unusual experiment inspired by the docu-movie "Supersize Me." But investigators, reporting their findings on Thursday, were also stunned to find that a relentless regimen of burgers, fries and soda also boosted so-called good cholesterol, seen as a key measure of cardiovascular health.
Researchers in Sweden asked 12 men and six women in their twenties, all slim and in good health, to eat two meals per day at McDonalds, Burger King or other fast-food restaurants over four weeks. The volunteers were also told to refrain from exercising. The goal was to increase body weight by 10 to 15 percent to measure the impact of an abrupt surge in calorie intake.
Blood samples were taken before, during and after the experiment to monitor levels of an enzyme called alanine aminotransferase, or ALT, a potential marker for liver damage often seen among heavy drinkers and patients with hepatitis C. Levels of ALT increased sharply after only one week, and quadrupled on average over the entire period, said lead researcher Frederik Nystrom, a doctor at the University Hospital of Linkoping. "The results scared me," he told AFP. "One of the subjects had to be withdrawn from the study because he had 10 times the normal ALT levels."
For 11 of the 18 subjects, ALT rose to levels that would normally reflect liver damage, even among individuals who did not drink any alcohol, although no such damage occurred, he said. Two of the individuals had liver steatosis, or fatty liver, in which fat cells build up dangerously in the liver, he said. Steatosis is associated with the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, which has taken on epidemic proportions, especially in industrialised countries.
Published in the British Medical Association's journal Gut, the study "proves that high ALT levels can be caused by food alone," said Nystrom. That signs of liver damage were linked to carbohydrates was another key finding, he said. "It was not the fat in the hamburgers, it was rather the sugar in the coke," he said.
But the most startling result implies that an intensive fast food diet might have some health benefits too, apparently from fat. "We found that healthy HDL cholesterol actually increased over the four-week period -- this was very counter-intuitive," Nystrom said. HDL, sometimes called "good cholesterol," seems to clean the walls of blood vessels, removing excess "bad cholesterol" that can cause coronary artery disease and transporting it to the liver for processing.
Nystrom has yet to publish the cholesterol findings, but said they were consistent with the so-called "French Paradox." For nearly two decades, scientists have wrestled to explain how the French can consume a diet rich in fats -- from abundant butter, cream, cheese and meat -- yet have generally low levels of heart disease and hypertension. "The study showed that the increase in saturated fat correlated with the increase in healthy cholesterol," he said.
http://www.blogdimen...che?s=32771690-
-- -
Defenders of the status quo are always stronger than reformers seeking change,
UNTIL the status quo self-destructs from its own corruption, and the reformers are free to build on its ashes.
Defenders of the status quo are always stronger than reformers seeking change,
UNTIL the status quo self-destructs from its own corruption, and the reformers are free to build on its ashes.
#3
calmcookie
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calmcookie
Posted 08 March 2008 - 12:36 PM
In my mind, there is no "French Paradox" because dietary FAT is not the problem (scientifically proven over and over again). The French also eat small portion sizes and drink moderate amounts of red wine (good resveratrol). They also tend to love life (joie de vivre and all that) so what's the paradox? There is none.
One of the unfortunate things in the Supersize me movie was that one of the doctors kept repeating "McDonalds HIGH FAT diet." Okay, it's high in fat, big deal. It's the SUGAR that's the killer. The high glycemic sugar in those giant soft drinks is what caused the majority of damage. No question.
Best to all, C.C. 
#4
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Mark S. Young
Posted 08 March 2008 - 01:13 PM
"Moderate" in the studies of French drinkers I read was 2-5 glasses per day. That was only of Bordeaux, however.
That's a lot different from what folks here claim is "healthful". That said, there's a very serious t-totaler bent in a lot of the data we look at regarding intoxicants in this country.
Most doesn't differentiate between Beer, wine (red or white) and spirits. I'm absolutely convinced there's a big difference to our bodies amongst all. And probably more difference in each sub-set.
I wish it was hip to actually study this stuff here.
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